


To My Imagination

by Meddalarksen



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Gen, Grief, Introspection, The relationship tag was supposed to take more focus in this, Unfortunately SOMEONE won't actually focus on what I wanted him to, canonical character death mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-23
Updated: 2020-05-23
Packaged: 2021-03-02 21:42:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24333802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meddalarksen/pseuds/Meddalarksen
Summary: What does it mean when someone would rip their heart out for you? Hook tries to sort that out in the wake of The Dark One's defeat.
Relationships: Alice | Tilly & Wishverse Captain Hook | Detective Rogers, Wishverse Captain Hook | Detective Rogers/Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold
Comments: 2
Kudos: 8





	To My Imagination

**Author's Note:**

  * For [victoriousscarf](https://archiveofourown.org/users/victoriousscarf/gifts).



> This was written promptly after finishing the show when I should have been sleeping. But such it is when a ship grabs you by the throat.

Killian came sharply awake, clutching at his chest as he caught his bearings. It took almost a full minute before he could remember that the stones he could see were part of the palace they had retreated to, not the rough-hewn cave below Seattle. It was another beat of his--another heartbeat before he remembered his dream and realized he wouldn't be getting back to sleep.

He reached over and lit the lamp after fumbling for a moment, he'd gotten _very_ used to things like electricity. Dragging a hand over his face he hauled himself out of bed and moved over to the window. One thing he would give the palace, being surrounded by water was soothing. Not that it helped much.

He'd never been one to struggle with sleep: it was far better to be able to sleep whenever he could and come awake quickly even if there were several years in the middle where the second part of that wasn't true. All that really meant was he didn't know how to cope with not having a good night's sleep since the Dark One's castle and what had happened there.

Weaver had always been a bastard of one stripe or another. Add in his actual identity and Killian _really_ didn't know what to do with any of what had happened since they arrived back in his own land. It had been confusing enough to be called the man's friend, and they'd certainly fought alongside each other before, but being taken into the man's confidence was another storm entirely. He had to pull his hand away to rest on the windowsill when he realized he was massaging over the left side of his chest, a habit he didn't need to develop.

He'd died, or come close enough to count. He remembered that bit, remembered fighting against the pull of the despair that waited on the other side of the dark portal to grab Alice. He would do it again without thought, Alice was his North Star and had been for a very long time. He had known what it would cost him, but she would _always_ be worth that sacrifice. Even when he hadn't known her he'd known that.

That still didn't explain what happened while he'd been dead. Or was it dying? Rumplestiltskin had watched over Alice for years, when Killian hadn't been able to--when Killian hadn't _known_ to. Maybe the sacrifice had been for her. That had to be part of it. Maybe it was the whole of it for the Crocodile. But that didn't explain the way Killian had felt like his rudder had come off _again_ when he came to and found Weav--the Cr-- _Rumplestiltskin_ lying there dead.

The loss of a friend, it had to be. He'd known since long before Drusilla's curse that Rumplestiltskin was fighting his darkness to get back to his True Love. Whatever else they'd found in Seattle--partners, coworkers, friends even--it wouldn't have ever been anything else. Rumplestiltskin was tired. Anyone who _looked_ could have told you that, even without Alice's perceptiveness. There weren't what ifs because there never was a could have been.

Killian shook himself out of his thoughts and looked over when the door of his room opened, smiling when his daughter entered, "Couldn't sleep?"

She shrugged and offered that crooked grin of hers as she came over, "Stars are singing, dinnt feel right."

He held his hand out to her and saw the way she hesitated before coming closer and letting him pull her into a hug looking out over his sea. She leaned down against his chest at an odd angle and he brought his hand up to her hair, "What is it?"

She looked up at him, her eyes sparkling, "I can still hear him."

Killian hadn't expected her to make him breathless but he rested his chin on her head, watching the moonlight break on the waves out the window, "I'm glad, Starfish."


End file.
